Hemel Hempstead Town F.C.

History

The club was formed in 1885 as Apsley End F.C. and first played in the West Herts League, before joining the Herts County League in 1899 and competed until 1922. The club joined the Spartan League in 1922 and competed until 1952 when they joined the Delphian League, by which time they had changed their name to Hemel Hempstead F.C.

In 1955 the name was changed once again to Hemel Hempstead Town F.C. In 1962, with the dissolution of the Delphian League, the club joined the Athenian League in its new Division Two. They were promoted twice in consecutive seasons to reach the Premier Division but by 1969 had dropped back to Division Two. In 1972 the club merged with Hemel Hempstead United, with the merged club reverting to being called simply Hemel Hempstead.

In 1977 the Tudors joined the Isthmian League, where they were to play for over 25 years. They found success hard to come by in this league, even dropping to Division Three for one season, but since the arrival of new chairman Dave Boggins in 1997 their fortunes improved slightly. In 1997–98 the club won the Isthmian League Division Three title, followed by the Division Two title in 1999–2000, although in the latter instance they were not promoted due to ground grading issues. Nonetheless, a sixth-place finish in what was now Division One North in 2003–04 was enough to secure a place in the Southern League Premier Division after the reorganisation caused by the creation of Conference South.

Hemel's first season in the Southern Premier was a disappointing one, as they finished fourth from bottom and were relegated. After a somewhat middling campaign in the Division 1 West the following season, a late surge saw Hemel promoted via the playoffs after a dramatic 3–2 win over Brackley Town, having been 2–1 behind until the 81st minute.

A more prepared Hemel side took to the Premier Division for the 2006–07 season, where a sequence of ten wins in fifteen games took the Tudors to their highest ever finish of fifth, taking the last playoff spot. A long campaign took its toll as Hemel lost 3–1 in the semi-final to Team Bath.

Hemel made the playoffs again in the 2008–09 season, going through a succession of managers in the process. Another fifth-place finish saw them pitted against Farnborough in the semi-final, where they were defeated 4–3 on penalties.

Hemel had a poor 2009–10 season, eventually finishing in 19th position. They were spared relegation by virtue of clubs from further up the pyramid being reprieved, demoted or ceasing to exist. During pre-season Colin Payne was appointed manager as they prepared for another season in the Southern League Premier Division.

In September 2011, due to a poor start to the season, Payne was relieved of his duties as manager, later to be replaced by Widdrington. Tommy Widdrington then left the club in March 2012, replaced by former Aylesbury management duo Mark Eaton and Alan Biley. After finishing 19th, Mark and Alan left the club and were replaced by Dean Brennan and Stuart Maynard. On May 25, the Football Association's proposed constitution for the Southern League Premier Division indicated a reprieve for Hemel Hempstead Town. This was ratified at the Southern League AGM on June 16, 2012, earning the Tudors a second reprieve in as many years.

A turn of fortune followed in the 2012/13 season, with Dean Brennan and Stuart Maynard leading the Tudors to 4th place in the league, the club's highest ever finish. Hemel beat Chesham United 2–0 in the playoff semi-final, before losing 5–4 in a penalty shootout to Gosport Borough (2–2 AET) in front of a record home league crowd of 2,840. The season also saw Hemel beat Potters Bar 2–0 to lift the Hertfordshire FA Senior Challenge Cup, a trophy the Tudors hadn’t won since 1926 (as Apsley FC). In June 2013, members of the Hertfordshire FA Competitions Committee voted Hemel Hempstead Town FC as the 2013 winners of the Sir Stanley Rous Memorial Trophy. The honour is given to the club or individual that has brought the most prestige to Hertfordshire in the last season.

The 2013/14 season saw the club win the Southern Premier Division to secure promotion to step 2 of the non-league pyramid.

Current squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Club records

Best champions league 1234-1235

Former players

1. Players that have played/managed in the Football League or any foreign equivalent to this level (i.e. fully professional league).
2. Players with full international caps.
3. Players that hold a club record or have captained the club.